DUI (a) at 0.07 BAC

[dui_charged]

CALIFORNIA - LOS ANGELES COUNTY ... case at WEST COVINA COURTHOUSE

Yet another case of DUI - I know ... sorry...

Basically it happened on July 1st around 1am: I drove home from a friends house after having two fast beers - Im driving a car with over 1000HP so I would not even start the engine if Im not certain I can handle it... I have a very high tolerance to alcohol in general but this is obviously not an excuse.

Basically I took over a highway patrol car one exit before mine and got pulled over. My first question is if thats even a "good stop" ?

At the stop he asked me if I wanted to "race him" ? Obviously I denied - I didnt even break the speed limit! Also the ticket doesnt say anything about that.

The cruiser wasn't following me at all (no pacing, no radar, no proof of speeding whatsoever) - he was in front of me (and one lane to the right) all the time but there were several cars behind him (he was going slower than speed limit!) and I needed to change lanes, so I opted for going in front of him and making the lane-change towards the offramp (he was in the very right lane, I was one over) instead of braking and blocking traffic behind me. The lane-change was done properly including turn-signal (I'm not stupid in front of a cop!)

He asked me if I drank and I told him "two beers" - no reason to lie here. He did the FST which checked out fine (I didnt stumble or fall or anything) - Im not sure about the "SPEECH TEST" but I'm actually from Europe with a heavy accent... I don't think that counts as "impairment". That was my second stop EVER and I was quite nervous also ... but I guess they saw that already. Also before he performed that "follow the pen test" he asked me if I had any medical issues and I told him that I had an operation on the eyes when i was a kid.
Well eventually he had me blow that PBT and it was 0.08 if I remember correctly ... was placed under arrest

The officers were actually pretty cool and we talked about the car, etc - they even helped me out and waited almost an hour before they took me to jail to finally blow a 0.07! One of the officers even drove my car up the towing-truck (I literally had to tell him how to drive the clutch as he would stall the car!) ... they didn't impound it or anything, just STORAGE. We also had a "nice" conversation actually and at some point I asked them what the report is gonna say: They replied that I cooperated and everything and they will definitely put that in their report.

Next day released from jail, got the DMV forms etc ...

Status now:
DMV is set aside without hearing - obvious at 0.07
CHP forwarded the case to DA in West Covina - but they didnt look at it yet

I have a PERFECTLY clean record, not even a parking ticket in 5 years!

My problem:
Im an international student and can't have ANY record else Im getting kicked out the country, etc...

QUESTIONS:
- was this a good stop? theres ZERO proof of speeding (because I didn't): no pacing, no radar, no lidar, nothing. He didn't even say it was an improper lane-change or anything... Just asked me if I wanted to race at the stop!?
- how can I be impaired if I have to tell the cop how do drive a manual !?

What are my chances of talking to the DA and get the charges dropped at the trial? Id donate some money to a charity of course ... some kind of "gentlemen's agreement"?

@cdwjava in case u read this ... you sometimes mention that your county usually doesnt file under 0.08? Would that be LA-county? thanks

 

[tranquility]

What are my chances of talking to the DA and get the charges dropped at the trial? Id donate some money to a charity of course ... some kind of "gentlemen's agreement"?

Which country are you from? While there is, arguably, some police corruption here, retail bribes are not really taken. Try this and go to prison, not jail, prison.

There is little chance of the charges being dropped. (Absent an attorney who can attack the stop. I think it's fine, but who knows what an expert can develop?) They could be negotiated and often are in a sub-per se limit case.

 

[dui_charged]

Which country are you from? While there is, arguably, some police corruption here, retail bribes are not really taken. Try this and go to prison, not jail, prison.

There is little chance of the charges being dropped. (Absent an attorney who can attack the stop. I think it's fine, but who knows what an expert can develop?) They could be negotiated and often are in a sub-per se limit case.

I would certainly not bribe anyone - my idea was to ASK the DA if he could eventually drop the charges as the results would be pretty devastating? Ultimately the punishment and offense should be in BALANCE (one of the basics of the law).

Me giving to charity is simply a sign that I don't want to just "sneak out" of this charge.

 

[Zigner]

I would certainly not bribe anyone - my idea was to ASK the DA if he could eventually drop the charges as the results would be pretty devastating?

Not nearly so devastating as what your actions COULD have resulted in.

 

[LakersFan]

I think you stand a good chance of having your case dismissed. I too was arrested with a BAC under .08 in LA county and the charges were dropped. The arrest was a huge lesson for me and in some level a cheap lesson even though I paid over 5K to a lawyer. I was lucky and will never drive drunk.

 

[asiny]

I think you stand a good chance of having your case dismissed. I too was arrested with a BAC under .08 in LA county and the charges were dropped. The arrest was a huge lesson for me and in some level a cheap lesson even though I paid over 5K to a lawyer. I was lucky and will never drive drunk.

In the words of the internet, you deserve a +1 for this.

And you deserve to be given a pat on the back for becoming more mindful. Sadly it does, often, take a scare or slap in the face to get some people to get the message... and I speak from experience too.

 

[HighwayMan]

I have a very high tolerance to alcohol in general but this is obviously not an excuse.

Excuse for what? If you are intoxicated or impaired there is no such thing as "high tolerance for alcohol" - that has no meaning.

Basically I took over a highway patrol car one exit before mine and got pulled over. My first question is if thats even a "good stop" ?

I think you mean "overtook". You (and we) don't know why you were stopped so no one can judge whether it was a "good stop".

At the stop he asked me if I wanted to "race him" ? Obviously I denied - I didnt even break the speed limit! Also the ticket doesnt say anything about that.

The ticket wouldn't say anything about speeding. Why would it - you're not charged with that. That doesn't mean that you didn't do it. And how do you know you didn't break the speed limit?

The cruiser wasn't following me at all (no pacing, no radar, no proof of speeding whatsoever)

But you said he was in front of you for a time. Pacing can be done from the front. And how do you know there was no radar????

Besides, an independent speed estimation is enough "proof" - no electronic instrument is necessary.

He did the FST which checked out fine (I didnt stumble or fall or anything) - Im not sure about the "SPEECH TEST" but I'm actually from Europe with a heavy accent... I don't think that counts as "impairment".

Everyone thinks they do well on the field tests. Do you even know what the tests are, how they are to be performed, and what "clues" exist that the officer is observing in order to determine how you do?
The "SPEECH TEST" is not a standardized test. It may be used as "icing on the cake" but it (whatever it is) is not used to determine impairment.

I have a PERFECTLY clean record, not even a parking ticket in 5 years!

And how is this relevant to your arrest?

QUESTIONS:
- was this a good stop? theres ZERO proof of speeding (because I didn't): no pacing, no radar, no lidar, nothing.

You asked this already. There may be proof you are not aware of. You are not all-knowing and you don't know at this time why you were stopped.

how can I be impaired if I have to tell the cop how do drive a manual !?

How can you possibly think this is relevant? You can very easily be impaired and give someone instructions or directions for anything.

 

[justalayman]

Basically it happened on July 1st around 1am: I drove home from a friends house after having two fast beers - Im driving a car with over 1000HP so I would not even start the engine if Im not certain I can handle it.

..there are a lot of idiots out there that believe the same thing. Sad to say the most of them are wrong, especially when it comes to that much horsepower on a public roadway.

I have a very high tolerance to alcohol in general but this is obviously not an excuse.

BS. You think you have a high tolerance. I am sure tests would show it is merely a belief on your part.

Basically I took over a highway patrol car one exit before mine and got pulled over. My first question is if thats even a "good stop" ?

You "took over" or you "over took". Took over is a statement meaning you gained control of. Over took is a statement meaning to have passed.

He asked me if I drank and I told him "two beers" - no reason to lie here. He did the FST which checked out fine (I didnt stumble or fall or anything)

there is much more to a FST than stumbling or falling to indicate intoxication. That is why a person claiming they passed the test is often wrong. They do not realize what else is being watched for in the tests.

- Im not sure about the "SPEECH TEST" but I'm actually from Europe with a heavy accent... I don't think that counts as "impairment". That was my second stop EVER and I was quite nervous also ... but I guess they saw that already. Also before he performed that "follow the pen test" he asked me if I had any medical issues and I told him that I had an operation on the eyes when i was a kid.
Well eventually he had me blow that PBT and it was 0.08 if I remember correctly ... was placed under arrest

and the problem is? Apparently he had reasonable suspicion to believe you were intoxicated and lo and behold the tests proved that.

btw: this is where the "I have a high tolerance to alcohol" gets proven that it is an incorrect assumption.

The officers were actually pretty cool and we talked about the car, etc - they even helped me out and waited almost an hour before they took me to jail to finally blow a 0.07! One of the officers even drove my car up the towing-truck (I literally had to tell him how to drive the clutch as he would stall the car!) ... they didn't impound it or anything, just STORAGE. We also had a "nice" conversation actually and at some point I asked them what the report is gonna say: They replied that I cooperated and everything and they will definitely put that in their report.

Next day released from jail, got the DMV forms etc ...

Status now:
DMV is set aside without hearing - obvious at 0.07
CHP forwarded the case to DA in West Covina - but they didnt look at it yet

I have a PERFECTLY clean record, not even a parking ticket in 5 years!

My problem:
Im an international student and can't have ANY record else Im getting kicked out the country, etc...

then you need to either hire a very good lawyer or pack your bags.

QUESTIONS:
- was this a good stop? theres ZERO proof of speeding (because I didn't): no pacing, no radar, no lidar, nothing. He didn't even say it was an improper lane-change or anything... Just asked me if I wanted to race at the stop!?

you have not stated why he actually stopped you. What does the report say as to the justification.

- how can I be impaired if I have to tell the cop how do drive a manual !?

What does one have to do with the other? When I'm drunk, I can tell a person how to do a lot of things. It doesn't mean I am not drunk. It simply means that I know how to do something and could adequately relate that to the other person.

What are my chances of talking to the DA and get the charges dropped at the trial?

I would say: 0%

Id donate some money to a charity of course ... some kind of "gentlemen's agreement"?

sounds like you want to attempt to bribe people. Not only will that not get your charges dropped, it will likely get more charges added.

 

[woodykas]

My problem:
Im an international student and can't have ANY record else Im getting kicked out the country, etc...

not at all. one DUI without aggravated circumstances does not leads to deportation.

3 DUI - definitely leads to deportation.

 

[garrula lingua]

They won't usually file on a .07 (there's too many over .08)

Some slip through, and the DDA in court may offer a 'wet and reckless'.
If you don't accept a wet, they will probably dismiss or offer a plea to one or two traffic violations.

I wouldn't hire an attorney until after the arraignment (if they file, ask the Judge for a copy of the complaint and police report, and ask for a continuance in order to hire an attorney).

 

[NellieBly]

I'm sure every last drunk driver who got behind the wheel thought they could "handle it."